Biography

Formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, the Shins was originally envisioned as a poppier offshoot of indie band Flake Music. James Mercer (26 December 1970, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA; guitar/vocals), Jesse Sandoval (drums) and Marty Crandall (b. Martin Lesley Crandall; keyboards) formed the Shins in 1997 following the release of Flake Musics sole album, When You Land Here, It's Time To Return. They recruited Scared Of Chakas David Yanul Hernandez and Ron Skrasek, but the new line-up was quickly sundered when the two new members elected to concentrate on their main band. Former Flake Music bass player Neal Langford was reunited with his former colleagues, restoring the original bands line-up under their new moniker.

The quartet released two seven-inch singles (Nature Bears A Vacuum and When I Goosestep) on the independent Omnibus label before signing to Sub Pop Records. Oh, Inverted World, featuring 11...